Autonomous Volvo trucks to usher in paradigm shift

Volvo is using automated trucks to offer a complete transport solution, with the Swedish manufacturer recently taking full responsibility for the transport of limestone from a mine in Norway to a nearby crusher and port.

A total of six fully automated Volvo FH16 trucks loaded to 90 tonnes each are currently operating in the Brønnøy Kalk quarry in northern Norway, with Volvo taking full responsibility for the entire transport task.

The trucks don't require a driver and can operate continuously, stopping only for refuelling and maintenance.

More importantly, the operation takes Volvo from being a simple manufacturer of trucks to a provider of complete transport services, while also shining a light on one aspect of the role vehicle automation will play in the future.

Speaking at a recent demonstration of UD Trucks' first automated truck at the company's headquarters in Ageo, Tokyo, Henrik Färnstrand, Vice President Group Vehicle Automation, Volvo Group, said the operation in Norway highlighted Volvo's intentions for an automated future.

"I think it's important to say automation will not only change the technology, the change is much bigger when it comes to way we do business, our business models," he said.

"So at Brønnøy, we're not selling a truck, we are taking full responsibility for the transport of limestone from down in the mine to the crusher on top – all of that is our responsibility."

The operation also underlines the use of vehicle automation in a confined area as an important stepping stone on the way to the use of automated vehicles on public roads.

At locations such as mines, construction sites, ports, warehouses and distribution centres, autonomous transport solutions can be deployed with far greater control and safety, and utilised for roles that often involve a set and repeatable route.

The mine in Norway, like in many countries and applications throughout the world, is bearing the brunt of a shortage of skilled drivers, resulting in wage inflation and high labour costs. It's just one area where Volvo believes automation can unlock major gains for its customers, along with higher safety, efficiency and productivity, among others.

Mr Färnstrand stressed that, while the technology is still in its early stages, it will change the way Volvo will approach its delivery of transport solutions.

"We are in a phase where we have a lot of flexibility – we are right now in a planning phase, which means that we are trying out a lot of different models, and seeing what fits," he said.

"None of them are perfect. We have an aspiration to move up the value chain, obviously, and to move away from just selling a truck to selling a transport solution. I think that is very clear, too – that is our intention.

"Does that mean that we will stop selling trucks? Of course not. We will be selling advanced trucks with advanced driver assist systems for a long period to come. But still, it is our aspiration to go down that route, absolutely."

The technology employed in the Volvo trucks in Norway is also at the heart of the autonomous UD Quon demonstrated in Japan. Under Volvo's Common Architecture Shared Technology framework (CAST), any part of the wider Volvo Group can select technologies developed elsewhere within the group and adapt it for its own products, customers and applications.

Volvo says the CAST framework accelerates the development process significantly – in the case of the autonomous Quon shown in Japan, UD Trucks says it took just four months for its engineers to integrate and adapt the technology.

"If it wasn't totally obvious already, Volvo Group is in pole position when it comes to automation within confined areas, and I'm so proud to be the Volvo Group representative here today, as UD Trucks takes a step into high-level automation," said Mr Färnstrand.

"And the new knowledge UD Trucks will gain in the coming years will be of great importance, not only to UD Trucks and its customers, but also for the entire Volvo Group."